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Scariest Game You've Ever Played?

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My wife and I were discussing scary movies and games recently, and she excited asked, "Oh yeah, what was that game you were playing when I came up behind you and made you jump, and you freaked out? haha"

That game was Dead Space, not the scariest of games, granted, but I think it had it's moments. I loved the fact that the game didn't pause when using terminals or the suit-menus - great tension building device.

I'm currently playing through Amnesia: Dark Descent and enjoying it immensely, definitely some good scares in there.

Oldschool games which scared me: I remember playing the first Alone in the Dark game and being not being overly scared, but certainly creeped out. I also remember playing Quake for the first time -- the first encounter with a Shambler was definitely a landmark scare in my gaming career. D:

Silent Hill 1 had me running out of the room screaming at certain points when playing it on my own, in winter. Especially that fucking school when you first meet the little black blob ghost baby things that squeak at you. Brr!

Also, F.E.A.R. did a pretty good job of freaking me out. Some people say it was too corridor-centric, and it probably was, but wandering around those deserted office corridors with your comm link crackling and it flashing "Unknown Origin" kept my heart rate elevated. Good times.

I played and completed Dark Seed without a solution. At first it was scary, then it became annoying, but limited budget and being only fairly young meant I had no other gaming options. It was this and/or Necropolis.

I played and completed Dark Seed without a solution. At first it was scary, then it became annoying, but limited budget and being only fairly young meant I had no other gaming options. It was this and/or Necropolis.

The art style was great though.

I was highly intrigued after seeing that video of Dark Seed, but a quick wikipedia lookup showed I never want to go near actually playing the thing.

Unlike most adventure games, which give the player time to explore, almost every action in Dark Seed has to fall within precise time limits, or the game will end up in an unwinnable state.

Amnesia, by far. The Penumbra games were freaky too, but Overture had too much skulking around and hiding from dogs, which made it all a bit samey, and Clarence took away some of the tension in Black Plague.

I played and completed Dark Seed without a solution. At first it was scary, then it became annoying, but limited budget and being only fairly young meant I had no other gaming options. It was this and/or Necropolis.

The art style was great though.

I was highly intrigued after seeing that video of Dark Seed, but a quick wikipedia lookup showed I never want to go near actually playing the thing.

Unlike most adventure games, which give the player time to explore, almost every action in Dark Seed has to fall within precise time limits, or the game will end up in an unwinnable state.

Yes, it was horrible. Absolutely horrible. The prospect of timing in a video game never occured to my pre-teenage mind. I think I lucked out when I completed the damn thing.

The most vivid thing i remember about it is that when you die an alien pops out of you and it looks like it sticks it's tongue out, mocking you.

::edit:: I never got to the end of Realms of the Haunting, I always found it started scary (and I loved the FMV) but lost it's atmosphere further in.

Once you've actually seen the thing, and know exactly how it works (there is a pattern), then it ceases to be scary. At about 1/3 through the game, every time it appeared, I expected it, and dealt with it. I think I only EVER died once.

Fatal Frame.

That game was scary. I was a lot younger when I played it, but the ghosts and shit in that game move randomly, look different, look FUCKED UP, and can go through walls and attack you from behind.
You get bonux points if you let it get REALLY close before you take a photo, usually ending up with some fucked up looking photos.

No, Fatal Frame is much much scarier than Amnesia.

I have yet to see a game that can match Fatal Frame in any sense.
I don't look for em, so they might be out there, but I haven't seen them.

You're isolated in negative 40 degree tundra. Small bases and outposts are your only refuge. You're running low on food. There's something else here. You have three companions, and then the door slams shut! The doctor following you pulls his gun and points it at you. He thinks you are the creature. You try to calm him down, and between the shouting and shaking and crying, you notice your other companion slowly growing tentacles, his flesh melting away.

Not knowing who was the creature and when the creatures would show up. That game got to me.

Silent Hill 1 is my king for this. There was one part, sneaking around in Rust World and my radio starts going nuts. I pull out my pipe and start wildly looking around for the disturbance. I round a corner and see two ghost babies in front of me. They do no damage and do nothing but cavort around and it scared the bejesus out of me.

Clive Barker's Undying was also very good and scary. That Scrye ability made for some fucked up moments.

System Shock 2, at least the early sections, were nice and tense.

That mansion from Vampire:Bloodlines. I'm a fucking vampire! This shit shouldn't scare me.

It was all jump scares, but Resident Evil 2, I THINK Leon's 2nd quest. At some point, the Tyrant busts through a wall, bringing rape. You fend him off and carry on. As you walk past the wall he busted through (good touch) on the other side, he comes through the wall AGAIN! So fucked up. I may be remembering that wrong

I never found Dead Space or Alan Wake scary at all, although they both had good atmosphere. The most recent game that game me the willies was Silent Hill for the Wii. I thought they did a really good job with that.

Once you've actually seen the thing, and know exactly how it works (there is a pattern), then it ceases to be scary. At about 1/3 through the game, every time it appeared, I expected it, and dealt with it. I think I only EVER died once.

Fatal Frame.

That game was scary. I was a lot younger when I played it, but the ghosts and shit in that game move randomly, look different, look FUCKED UP, and can go through walls and attack you from behind.
You get bonux points if you let it get REALLY close before you take a photo, usually ending up with some fucked up looking photos.

No, Fatal Frame is much much scarier than Amnesia.

I have yet to see a game that can match Fatal Frame in any sense.
I don't look for em, so they might be out there, but I haven't seen them.

True dat. I've played most of the games listed here and I scoff at most of these. But Fatal Frame beats every single one of them by a country mile. I liked III the best.

All of Thief 3 was pretty good at making you extremely nervous, at least much more so than any other stealth game I've played. I've been playing it again recently, and while I haven't got to the Cradle yet there was another moment that really got me...

I was infiltrating the Hammerite's place for the first time, and I made it to the lower area filled with machines and fire. I was hurt, but it was a new area and no one had been alerted yet, so I thought I'd be ok if I played it safe. I killed the first few guards I saw and carefully hid their bodies near the door I came in through. Thinking I was safe for bit I started exploring the area, picking up some items and pulling a few switches, when suddenly I heard some shuffling behind me. It didn't sound like a guard and it hadn't yelled at me or anything, so in my confusion I calmly turned around and GOT MY FACE CHEWED OFF BY A FUCKING ZOMBIE. The Hammerites had been keeping the thing locked in a tiny room that might as well have been a jail cell, and one of the switches I pulled let it out. I knew the game had zombies in it, but I had no idea I'd meet one this early and I certainly wasn't expecting to see any here. The worst part is that I had to have walked right by its room without even seeing it, desipte it being plainly visible through the door and window. I can imagine the thing taking a half-hearted swipe at me through the bars as I walked past, and gleefully sneaking up behind me after the door unexpectedly opened. Ugh.

Stalker: SoC for me. Exploring some dark, shadowy underground tunnels. I'd duked it out with the Army on the way in so I was kinda hurt, but had collected a good bit of ammo for a [strike]shiny[/strike] dirty, rusty new assault rifle.

I rounded a corner and entered a rather cavernous room, the far end lost in darkness, the sounds of water dripping in the distance, metal creaking here and then, my Geiger counter softly ticking occasionally. And..what was that? Was that heavy breathing? I whip around, empty corridor.

Slap slap slap.

Wet, bare feet running across concrete. I turn towards the sound and see..nothing.

Slap slap slap.

Turn again, nothing. I'm starting to get freaked out, what the fuck is going o-slap slap slap. Closer, this time.

I turn and fire blindly. Nothing. As I'm reloading SLAP SLAP SLAP, followed by a primal scream right behind me. Slash marks across my screen, health is low, I'm bleeding and losing more health. I turn, and see nothing but a flicker of movement.

I retreat into a corner to bandage myself up, flashlight probing into the darkness in front of me.

Slap slap slap.

....Save, Quit.

Exactly this experience, except I killed it with a shotgun blast to the face as it lunged at me but still went and sat in a corner for 5 minutes getting my heart rate down to a safe level before quitting and not touching the game for a week.

Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines. Specifically the haunted hotel level. A lot of other games that people have mentioned will seriously freak me out, but that particular level of Bloodlines stands out in particular because it's not actually dangerous -- there is only one part where your character can be killed. Nevertheless, it will still make you jump.

Yeah, the hotel is just really well designed. And creepy as fuck, the little kid's drawing still stands out. I had heard stories about it before I did it, so when

Spoiler:

the light popped when I first went there

I jumped and ran out of the map area and did all the other quests I possibly could before going back.

Fatal Frame really needed to be first-person. You'd think that would be an obvious move given that the game revolves around looking through a camera anyway. Ghosts can work for me, but there's no immersion or feeling of danger when I'm watching one move toward someone I'm seeing from a point that's often high and far away. You also lose the tension that comes from being unable to see everything around you at once, and the jump you get when you turn around and something's right there in your face.

Fatal Frame II (the only one I've played) got a lot creepier when I put the camera up and slowly walked around town while looking through it for a while.

Man, I just thought of how much more awesome leading your sister around would have been if they did it that way. You could be walking around looking at things, then turn around to check on her and suddenly you'd see a ghost-child standing next to her, tugging her dress. Or she'd be gone and a ghost girl would be there, smiling at you. Such a missed opportunity.

I haven't played a lot of the games referenced here, but I'll toss in my support for Eternal Darkness. Whoever said watching people play horror games was fun and not scary wasn't watching someone play this. I saw rooms of people jump at The Scene, and there were plenty of other moments that creeped people out.

The first Manhunt was also pretty frightening at times. Running at full speed away from the killers, hiding in the dark and knowing that you were dead if you were found, sneaking up on a guy and praying that he didn't turn around: all of this built a very real emotional response.

The Gabriel Knight games also did it well, but differently than most games. Especially in Sins of the Fathers, the game starts off very safe and secure, with the player just kind of looking in the window at a dangerous world, while growing connected to some very real characters. As the game moves forward and bad things can actually happen, the escalation is slow enough that the moment are genuinely scary. Combine amazing music, writing, and cinematics, and you've got a game that isn't a horror game, but can be very frightening at times.

I'd actually like to show some love for Doom 3 here. I know it barely counts as a horror game and nearly every scare was cheap and uninteresting, but does anyone remember the beginning? Before the monsters even showed up? I loved that part. The obviously frantic attempts at corporate moral boosting, the overall feeling of depressing and hopelessness, the vague and unspoken fear, the bits and pieces of information that hinted at something terrible....

It all came together to really suck me into it, to the point that I remember talking to a technician in some maintenance tunnels and being genuinely weirded out by the place. Like the feeling you get if you walk through a dark basement and have a sudden urge to run for the lightswitch for no tangible reason.

Maybe it won't be as good if I go back and play it now, and it certainly wasn't once the fighting started as I never even bothered to finish it, but I have fond memories of that first ten minutes or so.

EDIT: Good to hear about Fatal Frame. I might pick those up whenever I get an XBOX.

If you've got a Wii capable of running imports, Fatal Frame 4 is also pretty good.

I never got the allure of Doom 3, just seemed like a super dark by the numbers FPS. I'll agree with the STALKER games though, there's something about those that just sows dread into your very heart. I need to sit down and finally beat Call of Pripyat, marvelous thus far.

Origin is the exact same as my Steam, in case you're needing a Support or Assault in BF3.

You're isolated in negative 40 degree tundra. Small bases and outposts are your only refuge. You're running low on food. There's something else here. You have three companions, and then the door slams shut! The doctor following you pulls his gun and points it at you. He thinks you are the creature. You try to calm him down, and between the shouting and shaking and crying, you notice your other companion slowly growing tentacles, his flesh melting away.

Not knowing who was the creature and when the creatures would show up. That game got to me.

I REALLY wanted to get in to that game but never had the patience. Something about the start bored me. I'm stupid.

You're isolated in negative 40 degree tundra. Small bases and outposts are your only refuge. You're running low on food. There's something else here. You have three companions, and then the door slams shut! The doctor following you pulls his gun and points it at you. He thinks you are the creature. You try to calm him down, and between the shouting and shaking and crying, you notice your other companion slowly growing tentacles, his flesh melting away.

Not knowing who was the creature and when the creatures would show up. That game got to me.

I REALLY wanted to get in to that game but never had the patience. Something about the start bored me. I'm stupid.

The controls were a bit clunky, but it creeped me right the fuck out. And the creature was someone different every time you played.

That soldier that's been watching your back for the past two hours? He's now devouring you with a mouth full of acid teeth coming from his stomach.

I'll back up all the mentions of Fatal Frame and Silent Hill. There are some within each of those series that I would recommend specifically getting or avoiding (Fatal Frame 1 & 2 are best IMO, and Silent Hill 1 & 2 are the highlights of the series).

I also have a remarkable soft spot for Resident Evil 2. See, when I first played RE2 I didn't own a playstation, I would pool my allowance with a friend, we would rent a playstation and one game to play over a weekend. This weekend we chose RE2.

We get the game and the PlayStation. We don't get a memory card. Playing through RE2 when you are not allowed to save under any circumstances makes the game much, much, much more tense.

Fatal Frame really needed to be first-person. You'd think that would be an obvious move given that the game revolves around looking through a camera anyway. Ghosts can work for me, but there's no immersion or feeling of danger when I'm watching one move toward someone I'm seeing from a point that's often high and far away. You also lose the tension that comes from being unable to see everything around you at once, and the jump you get when you turn around and something's right there in your face.

Fatal Frame II (the only one I've played) got a lot creepier when I put the camera up and slowly walked around town while looking through it for a while.

Man, I just thought of how much more awesome leading your sister around would have been if they did it that way. You could be walking around looking at things, then turn around to check on her and suddenly you'd see a ghost-child standing next to her, tugging her dress. Or she'd be gone and a ghost girl would be there, smiling at you. Such a missed opportunity.

I believe the Director's Cut of Fatal Frame 2 had a FPS mode. I'll have to check when I get home now. D:

You're isolated in negative 40 degree tundra. Small bases and outposts are your only refuge. You're running low on food. There's something else here. You have three companions, and then the door slams shut! The doctor following you pulls his gun and points it at you. He thinks you are the creature. You try to calm him down, and between the shouting and shaking and crying, you notice your other companion slowly growing tentacles, his flesh melting away.

Not knowing who was the creature and when the creatures would show up. That game got to me.

I REALLY wanted to get in to that game but never had the patience. Something about the start bored me. I'm stupid.

The controls were a bit clunky, but it creeped me right the fuck out. And the creature was someone different every time you played.

That soldier that's been watching your back for the past two hours? He's now devouring you with a mouth full of acid teeth coming from his stomach.

That's because every one in the game just had a random chance to go alien every few minutes. Even if you kept one completely safe and untouched by critters: BOOM. Alien. It totally sucked.

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joshofalltradesYOU get a hellbat! YOU get a hellbat!Everybody gets a hellbat!Registered Userregular

You're isolated in negative 40 degree tundra. Small bases and outposts are your only refuge. You're running low on food. There's something else here. You have three companions, and then the door slams shut! The doctor following you pulls his gun and points it at you. He thinks you are the creature. You try to calm him down, and between the shouting and shaking and crying, you notice your other companion slowly growing tentacles, his flesh melting away.

Not knowing who was the creature and when the creatures would show up. That game got to me.

I REALLY wanted to get in to that game but never had the patience. Something about the start bored me. I'm stupid.

The controls were a bit clunky, but it creeped me right the fuck out. And the creature was someone different every time you played.

That soldier that's been watching your back for the past two hours? He's now devouring you with a mouth full of acid teeth coming from his stomach.

That's because every one in the game just had a random chance to go alien every few minutes. Even if you kept one completely safe and untouched by critters: BOOM. Alien. It totally sucked.

There were scripted events that may as well have been a big bold yellow line on the floor where any unchanged members would instantly turn into a monster. I mean you could literally use one of your tests on your teammate, "Hey cool you're human" take two steps and "NO I ARE A MONSTAR RAR"